Parents are being urged to get their children vaccinated against measles
before they travel for the Easter holidays following outbreaks in Europe,
according to the Health Protection Agency (HPA).

It has sent letters to schools warning of a "large outbreak" in France plus outbreaks in Italy, Germany and Bulgaria.

The letter reads: "Families planning to travel abroad during the school holidays should check that they are up to date with their measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccinations prior to departure. This is also important for any planned school trips."

It also said there had been "confirmed measles cases across Surrey and Sussex" in schools.

So far this year 4,000 people have been diagnosed with measles in France - not far short of the 4,500 diagnosed in Britain since 2006. Switzerland and Spain are also reporting large numbers of cases.

Last month the National Travel Health Network and Centre issued advice stating that "overseas travel is an important factor in the international spread of measles".

It noted that a third of measles cases reported in January (eight of 22) were in people who had recently been to France, India, Turkey or Switzerland.

An HPA spokesman said: "We are seeing more cases where people have been abroad then come back to England and developed measles symptoms.

"We want parents to be aware of the symptoms and mindful that if they are travelling abroad and their children have not been immunised they will be vulnerable."

Measles is spread by inhaling droplets released when infected people cough or sneeze.

Most people only experience a mild fever but complications affect one in 15. These can include ear infections, pneumonia and seizures and, more rarely, encephalitis - swelling of the brain - which can cause brain damage and even death.

The disease has been largely eradicated by vaccination, including the MMR programme which started in 1998.

However, millions of parents boycotted the triple-vaccine after Dr Andrew Wakefield and colleagues claimed in a 1998 study, published in The Lancet, that it could cause autism and bowel disease.

Those claims have now been debunked. Last year the General Medical Council found Wakefield guilty of serious professional misconduct and he was struck off.

However, it had a large impact on vaccination rates which fell from 91 per cent in 1997 to 80 per cent in 2003. They have since largely recovered.